Right 2 Rest Fest is Monday Jan 25!

Right 2 Rest Fest is Monday Jan 25!

Organizations Commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with Western Days of Action in Support of Campaign Protecting the Civil Rights of Homeless People

When: Monday January 25th, 11am-3pm, 2016

Where: State Capitol Building (Colfax and Lincoln)

Last year 300 plus people gathered on the Capitol steps for the first “Right to Rest Fest” to gain momentum for the legislative hearings of the Right to Rest Act that year. The bill did not pass last year but the Right to Rest Act is back! in 2016 Representatives Salazar and Melton are again sponsoring the bill.

On Monday January 25th from 11am-3pm we will be back at the State Capitol for the Right to Rest Fest! Join us to speak out, eat food, listen to music, and call for the end of the criminalization of people living without homes!

In the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the week commemorating his contributions to the Civil Rights movement, members of the Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP) are holding days of action in support of the civil and human rights of homeless people.

WRAP’s days of action will highlight and push for the passage of our Right to Rest Act, which would help end the criminalization and incarceration of unhoused individuals and families. The proposed state legislation is a response to the growing trend of cities creating laws that make it illegal to sit, sleep, stand, and share food in public space.

Right now Colorado Springs city council is considering passing law to make it illegal to sit on anything other than “designated seating areas,” and Fort Collins city council is considering a new version of their camping ban which makes covering yourself with anything other than clothing illegal.

“We raise our voices this week to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and continue his work in fighting for the civil rights of the most marginalized in our society,” said Ibrahim Mubarak of Portland’s Right 2 Survive, one of the 180 organizations working actively on the Homeless Bill of Rights Campaign. “With shelters filled to capacity and thousands of people on waiting lists for housing around the state, homeless people have no choice but to live in public space. Cities cannot continue to act as if arresting people for that is going to solve the problem.”

Over the past couple of years we have documented 1,527 homeless people’s interactions with local police, private security guards, and the criminal justice system in 17 cities in 8 states. All respondents participated in the surveys for the opportunity to speak “unfiltered” to the broader community about what is really happening on our nation’s streets to poor, disabled, and homeless community members.

More than three-quarters of survey respondents (81%) reported being harassed, cited or arrested by police officers for sleeping outside, 76% reported the same for sitting or lying down and 74% for loitering or simply “hanging out.” These were far and away the top crimes for which homeless people were charged. A sad corresponding fact is that only one quarter of respondents (25%) believed that they knew of safe, legal places to sleep.

WRAP continues its fight to protect these civil rights for all. Representatives in both the Colorado and California state legislature are expected to introduce Right to Rest legislation in the coming weeks.

WRAP’s Right to Rest Days of Action are taking place in San Francisco, Denver, Portland, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Chico and several other cities. WRAP’s actions stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and all other groups fighting unjust, violent law enforcement.

“Policymakers and elected officials can no longer use the police, discriminatory laws, and unjust enforcement as solutions to the problems that pervade our communities,” said Paul Boden of the Western Regional Advocacy Project. “They cannot ignore the calls for justice emanating from communities across the country.”